


Words in the Distance

by Akiko_Natsuko



Series: McHanzo [20]
Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Battle, Broken Promises, Character Death, Death, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Friendship/Love, Grief/Mourning, Heavy Angst, Hurt, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Missions Gone Wrong, Phone Calls & Telephones, Promises, Protectiveness, Rescue, Serious Injuries, Team, Voicemail, War
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-07
Updated: 2018-11-07
Packaged: 2019-08-17 05:51:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,363
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16510547
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Akiko_Natsuko/pseuds/Akiko_Natsuko
Summary: After a mission goes disastrously wrong, Hanzo is left trapped and injured, unable to do anything but wait for a rescue he almost didn't expect to come and with nothing but a voice on the end of the line to keep him company.





	Words in the Distance

_McCree? Jesse…I-I’m out of time…………. I’m sorry…. I…Love y…_

   There were tears on McCree’s cheeks as the message reached its end, the tone loud and obnoxious in his ear, and he took a shuddering breath before replaying the message again. It was stupid. It hurt, more and more as each day passed, and yet he couldn’t bring himself to let go of the phone, to delete the message. To erase the last time, he had heard from Hanzo, just as he couldn’t stop listening to it. Listening to the broken voice, filled with pain and exhaustion that not even the stubborn archer had been able to hold back, the words that he’d never thought Hanzo would be able to say. Still unable to believe that his partner would ever admit defeat, and those three words at the end, cut short by a gasping, rattling breath, the three words which they had both agreed never to utter on a job, and which now he wished he had said far more often.

_McCree?_

   The cowboy closed his eyes at the pleading tone, hearing the terror - the fear of dying alone in that simple question, and he cursed himself yet again for not picking up this call of all the calls. Fresh tears sliding down his cheek as he heard how Hanzo whimpered, clearly trying to smother the sound even at this point, before whispering his first name.

 _Jesse_ …

It had taken him a long time to convince Hanzo to call him by his first name, and for the most part the archer had stuck to his surname, only calling out his first name in moments of happiness, or trouble. And this time he hadn’t answered.

_I-I’m out of time…_

   Hanzo had tried to warn him from the start that it was bad, that he was barely holding on and yet McCree hadn’t listened. Or rather, he hadn’t been able to let the words take hold because if he had then he would have been worse than useless. Not that it had changed anything in the end.

_I’m sorry…_

   If there was ever a word he had wanted to ban from the Hanzo’s vocabulary it had been that word, it reminded him too much of the shadows that bad always been present in the dark eyes, the weight on the archer’s shoulders that nothing he nor Genji did could shift. It was the words that were whispered in the grip of a nightmare and murmured at the end of a battle when either of them were injured even if there was nothing anyone, let along Hanzo could have done to prevent it. They were words that he should never have felt the need to utter that day because Hanzo had saved him, had saved all of them with his actions and he’d hung on, clinging to life for as long as. If anything, they were the ones who should’ve been apologising.

_I…Love y…_

     Words that Hanzo had rarely said, not because he didn’t feel that way but because he still hadn’t been convinced that he deserved to feel like that, or that he deserved to be loved in return or that what either of them felt was truly love. His childhood leaving him unprepared in that aspect, and it had been something that McCree had been working desperately to change, only now he would never get to change it. And it broke his heart to think that the archer had died unconvinced of that fact, those words uttered in desperation when he realised that he was out of time. The recording ended, and he took a shuddering breath as the tone rang out once more before hitting replay again…

_McCree? Jesse…I-I’m out of time…………. I’m sorry…. I…Love y…_

****

Three weeks before:

    It was chaos. Admittedly it seemed as though every mission was chaos nowadays, their teamwork still shaky after the long years of separation, and their information gathering network was nothing like it had been back when Overwatch was at its height. Still they needed to do better, McCree thought as he sprang forward tackling Angela out of the way of the grenade that had just come sailing in through the window of the building they’d taken shelter in, covering her with his body as it exploded, thankfully far enough away that it did no damage. He didn’t wait to check that she was okay, whirling at the sound of footsteps, their attacker clearly coming to check on the success of the ambush and he levelled his gun in preparation, only to sigh as the man toppled forward barely one step inside the door with an arrow quivering in the centre of his back.

“Thanks, partner,” he muttered into his communicator, unsurprised when he didn’t even get an acknowledgement from the archer. Hanzo wasn’t talkative at the best of times, even with their relationship, and when they were in a battle, the older man lost all awareness of anything but his bow and their opponents. Making a note to show his gratitude personally later, he turned and offered a hand to Angela who was grimacing as she rubbed her side. “Sorry, Doc…”

“Having you land on me is infinitely preferable to being hit by a grenade,” she pointed out with a small smile, before her expression turned serious, and she returned to working on the bullet wound in his shoulder that she had been tending before, and he hissed. He’d had managed to forget about it in the adrenaline rush of hearing the grenade heading towards them, but thankfully the pain was short-lived as Angela wasn’t wasting any time today and he let out a sigh of relief, flexing it to make sure there was no lasting stiffness before nodding gratefully, earning himself a small smile before her expression turned grim. “We’re not going to get anywhere at this rate, maybe we should retreat?”

“I…” He didn’t want to agree, even after all the missions both successful and failed that he had endured, he still didn’t like to retreat from anything. Still, he had to admit that the odds were against them right now. They were outnumbered, and they had become scattered within moments of launching their attack. Hanzo was clearly nearby, or at least he had been - McCree had learned the hard way that the archer roamed whilst fighting, and he knew better than to assume he’d still be watching over them, after all they weren’t the only ones in trouble.

    Fareeha and Ana had radioed in a few minutes ago to say that they were together, but on the far side of the complex and with a high number of enemies between them and where McCree was, and Lucio and Hana had reported that they were going to try and regroup with them. Worryingly they’d heard nothing since, although hopefully that was just due to damaged communications, and not something worse. Genji hadn’t reported in at all, but McCree was confident that the ninja was probably giving their enemy hell right now. Still, they needed to regroup, and they weren’t going to get the chance if they stayed here. “Call Winston,” he muttered after a moment, admitting defeat, his fingers tightening around his weapon as Angela moved to obey. _Damn it all…_

    It didn’t take long for Angela to get through to Winston, and even less time for him to order a retreat and whilst McCree bristled at the command, it was a relief to have the matter taken out of his hands. And he was nodding his agreement even as he reached for his communicator.

“Hanzo?” He called, scowling when there was no reply, his voice sharpening as he glanced at the window, wondering if his partner was still watching over them. “Now is not the time to ignore me!”

 _“What is it?”_ Hanzo’s voice was terse, and it was only the months of living together that let McCree discern that he wasn’t irritated with him but the situation at hand, although his eyes narrowed at the next bit. “ _I am rather busy…”_ He could hear gunfire through the communicator, and the steady sound of Hanzo’s arrows being notched and released and he knew without a doubt that each one would be hitting its mark. He really needed to drag the archer down to the practice range when they got back and have a rematch, that was if they got out of this mess of course. There was a brief pause in the sound of Hanzo’s bow, and McCree realised he had hesitated too long when he caught the note of concern when his partner prompted him to continue. “ _McCree?”_

“We’re retreating,” he replied, unable to hide how much that bothered him. He wasn’t worried though, because he knew that Hanzo would be of the same mind, and he half expected a protest as he caught the sharp intake of breath that followed.

 _“Understood,”_ Hanzo seemed determined to always prove him wrong, and McCree allowed himself a weary grin at that realisation, although it faded at the archer’s next words. _“I will locate the others.”_

“Hanzo…”

 _“I will be careful, wait for me,”_ Hanzo reassured him, those last three words the closest he would ever let himself come to saying ‘I love you’ when they were out in the field, and McCree sighed. Part of him was relieved because he knew the archer wouldn’t break his word once it was spoken aloud, it was part of the reason why Hanzo had gone out of his way to avoid saying such things in the early days of their relationship, whilst another part hated the thought of Hanzo running deeper into the battle. But they couldn’t just abandon the rest of their team, and he knew that the archer had a better chance of moving around undetected than either Angela or he did.

“Fine, but hurry.”

   There was no reply this time, but he could almost imagine the eye roll that had probably met that plea, and he managed a weary smile before turning back to find that Angela was watching him with a knowing expression, and to his horror he felt himself blushing. He was nearly forty and here he was blushing at being caught worrying over his partner, and he coughed awkwardly before asking it what he hoped was a nonchalant tone.

“What?”

“Nothing, you’re good for each other,” Angela smiled, amused at his embarrassment for a moment before she straightened and drew her gun. “We need to move, no doubt they’re aware of where we are, and we’ll need to get to the rendezvous point.” McCree nodded, stretching his shoulder once more, testing it before checking his own weapon. She was right, and yet there was an uneasy feeling stirring in the pit of his stomach in response to the thought of moving, and he knew it had to do with Hanzo. However, he could just imagine the expression his partner would be wearing if he knew that he was hesitating, and why he was hesitating and with a sigh, he straightened and forced a grin as he turned back to her.

“Let’s get out of here.”

**

   Hanzo cursed under his breath as he was forced to dive for cover behind some storage containers, it seemed as though these Talon operatives had been warned about his methods because he had been forced down from his rooftop perch by a persistent barrage of bullets. If they’d thought that would be enough to thwart him then they were wrong, but it did complicate matters as he had been relying on his vantage point to track down the others, especially as it seemed that several groups of Talon soldiers had ended up exchanging friendly fire, making it hard to work out which was the real fight. Taking a deep breath, he notched another arrow to his bow, noting with concern that he was beginning to run low before dismissing that thought from his mind and stepping out from his hiding place.

 _One shot, one kill_.

   It was something that had been drilled into him from a child, and even the surprise of one of the soldiers appearing from above him, over the top of the containers wasn’t enough to stop as he let the arrow fly. Another one down.

   There was a sharp crack in the distance, and despite the situation, his lip quirked upwards, it had taken him time to differentiate between the sound of the different guns firing, but now he could pick out Peacemaker with ease, and he felt tension that he hadn’t even been aware of easing. McCree was safe, for now at least. And even though he scolded himself for worrying about one person above the others, he felt more balanced as he moved on, deftly notching another arrow before he became aware of another sound beneath the noise of the battle. He didn’t see the appeal of Lucio’s music, although he’d felt its benefits more than once, but right now it was one of the best things he’d heard, and he tilted his head for a moment, trying to work out where it was coming from as the buildings and sound of gunfire distorted the noise. Giving up as he heard more soldiers heading in his direction, he slipped away between two buildings, just hoping that he was heading in the right direction.

   A sudden explosion caught his attention, and the cry that followed had him changing direction and breaking into a run as he recognised Hana’s voice, skidding around a corner he was met by the yellow pulse of Lucio’s music as he spotted the younger man crouched next to Hana. There was no sign of her mech apart from the scorch marks nearby, and there was a rip in her jumpsuit which was framed with an increasingly large crimson stain and Hanzo scowled at the sight.

“Hanzo!” Hana had spotted him, offering him a weak attempt at her usual grin as she tried to lift her arm to wave at him only to grimace as she realised that wasn’t such a good idea. Lucio had turned at her cry, rising to his feet and nodding in greeting, he also looked worse for wear but a quick examination didn’t throw up any concerning injuries and the archer sighed in relief before returning the greeting.

“We’re retreating,” he explained without preamble as he reached them, catching the scowl that flickered across Hana’s face and he was surprised when all she did was nod in agreement, normally she was one of the most vocal about getting the job done.

“But…” Lucio protested before glancing at Hana and falling silent as he looked away.

“You can’t fight like this anyway,” Hanzo pointed out as he also glanced at Hana, sharp eyes taking note of the tremors in her hands and the way she flinched at each sound in the distance. He knew how gifted she was in battle, but this had been one hell of a job and he couldn’t blame her for being shaken, especially with the loss of her mech. Offering her a sympathetic half-smile he turned back to Lucio who still didn’t look happy about the idea of pulling out of the mission, and he reached out to rest a hand on the Brazilian’s shoulder, holding his gaze as he added softly. “Let’s get out of here for now, we can come back and punish them for this loss once we’ve regrouped and recovered.” That was certainly a mission he would be interested in; this chaos was leaving a nasty taste in his mouth and his hand tightened on his bow. Next time it would be Overwatch wreaking the havoc - one way or another he was going to make sure of that, and he had a feeling that he wouldn’t be alone.

“Yeah, count me in,” Lucio muttered before turning and offering Hana a hand up, easing her to her feet before wrapping a supportive arm around her waist. “Come on short-stuff let’s get you out of here.” She pouted at the nickname and he shot her a grin before turning to Hanzo, eyes narrowing as he caught the archer looking off into the distance where they could hear fresh gunfire breaking out, realising that it lay in the opposite direction to the rendezvous point. “You’re not coming with us.” It wasn’t a question, as they’d all learnt the hard way, that Hanzo was probably the most protective when his team was in danger, to the point where McCree had made it a standing request for people to haul the stubborn archer out if they could. There had been fireworks on the base the day Hanzo had found about that particular request, but the rule had stuck much to his displeasure.

“I still need to find the others and let them know,” Hanzo pointed out, shooting him a knowing look and Lucio glanced away, knowing that he couldn’t really argue with that. Besides with Hana resting against him there was no way he could drag the archer out as well. “Get her back safely.”

“Of course.”

   Hanzo waited until they were out of sight before turning and sprinting in the other direction, an uneasy feeling stirring in the pit of his stomach and he hastily flicked on his communicator.

“Lucio and Hana are headed to the rendezvous point. Hana is wounded but walking,” he barked even as he decided to risk taking to the rooftops again, bow clutched tightly to his side as he bounded up the side of a building, sharp eyes immediately taking in the billowing smoke coming from the area that he was heading for and he sped up.

 _“Okay,”_ McCree’s voice was crackly and hard to hear, but it was reassuring just to hear his voice and Hanzo felt some of his unease shifting, at least until the gunslinger’s next words registered. _“We’ve got Ana and Fareeha, and we’re nearly at the point. It’s time for you to get out of their partner._ ” The archer frowned at that, glancing ahead to where he could still here gunfire, double checking his position. He was nowhere near the rendezvous point, and that was why he had assumed he would find mother and daughter there, but if they were safe that just left…

“Have you seen Genji?”

_“Not yet, but…”_

“There’s something I need to check out,” Hanzo cut across him, switching off the communicator before McCree could try and continue, aware that his partner was going to remind him that Genji could more than handle himself. As though he needed reminding of that fact and try to convince him to go back. He knew that he was going to catch it from McCree when he got back, noticing that the communicator was already blinking again and choosing to ignore it as he bounded across the rooftops, his earlier unease returning tenfold.

**

 _I’m going to kill him,_ McCree growled to himself as once again his call went unanswered, knowing that even if Hanzo was in the middle of a fight he would have noticed the light blinking. He stubbornly ignored the small part of him that was whispering that maybe the archer wasn’t answering because he was hurt or worse, instead focusing on the thought that Hanzo was deliberately ignoring him. _Damn stubborn fool…_

“You make the most interesting faces when you’re thinking about that man,” Ana commented as she moved up alongside him, and he sighed as he glanced at her, catching the way the corner of her mouth was quirking upwards.

“The same could be said of you when Fareeha is involved,” McCree retorted without any real heat as he tilted his head to where Angela was treating a rather nasty gash that Fareeha had sustained, catching the way Ana’s gaze flickered towards her daughter before she could stop it. It amused him to see the stern woman like that, remembering all the times that she had worried and fussed over them in the early days of Overwatch but concealing it with gruff words and lots of sleeping darts - not that she had ever stopped with the last one. “I worry about him.” He added softly, amusement fading slightly as he leant back against the wall as he waited for the healer to finish, sharp eyes searching for the slightest hint of movement up ahead. They were so close to safety now, and he was determined that nothing was going to stop them all getting out of this now.

“He’s too stubborn to die.”

“True,” McCree admitted with a chuckle, certain that his partner could out stubborn anyone if he put his mind to it and he managed a weak grin of thanks before turning his attention to the other two as Angela rose to her feet. “All set, Doc?”

“She’ll live, although I might have to tie her down when we get back, so that she actually rests this time,” Angela replied with a long-suffering air that became a groan as she caught the smirk on Fareeha’s face, and the answering one on McCree’s face - they were both as bad as each other when it came to bed rest. No, it wasn’t just them - the entirety of Overwatch were bad at accepting the fact that sometimes rest did more for them than the biotic technology at their disposure and she sent a pleading glance at Ana.

“She’ll rest,” the sniper assured her, ignoring her daughter’ splutter of protest as she tapped her gun meaningfully before looking back at McCree. “We should move, especially if Hana is injured. Hanzo and Genji will catch up with us soon enough.” She said it with such supreme confidence that McCree found himself having to believe her and he nodded, pushing himself away for the wall, his finger ready on his gun as he led the way out of the temporary hiding place. His other fingers crossed under the cover of his serape as he prayed that she was right.

_Hanzo…_

****

   Hanzo wasn’t sure what had caught his attention as his focus had been on the operative sniping at him from a well-covered spot on the next building over, pinning him down and preventing him from being able to move in any direction. The world had narrowed down to the shaft of his arrow, even the sting from the various scrapes and one slightly deeper bullet graze from the initial attack fading as he took aim. However, just as his fingers were about to release the arrow there was a rumbling beneath his feet, throwing him off balance and into sight and he barely had chance to register the sharp retort of the sniper’s rifle and the answering pain that blossomed in his shoulder before the building beneath him seemed to erupt. For a moment, all he was aware of was smoke and flames filling the air around him, his breath catching as he was flung backwards, and he was unable to stop the pained cry that escaped as he landed on his injured shoulder. There was no chance for him to recover before he was falling, and his eyes widened with terror as he realised the building was crumbling beneath him.

   There was no way for him to control his fall and he was vaguely aware of his bow being ripped from his hands, but he had no time to worry about it because he was surrounded by flames and rubble, the building closing in on him as it collapsed in on itself. _This is bad_ , was the last coherent thought that he managed to form before something struck the side of his head, shattering the communicator and driving several shards of it into the tender flesh around his ear, whilst it felt like his temple was being split open as something else struck him form the opposite side. Agony lanced through him, every inch of his body being pounded by the collapsing building and he had a vague impression of blood trickling down his face before darkness swept over him.

_Jesse…_

**

   When the quartet finally reached the small outbuilding, they had set as their rendezvous point it was to discover that Genji was already waiting for them. His cybernetic suit bore the evidence of hard fighting, sparks flying in a couple of places and his sword was covered in blood as he raised it towards them before realising who it was, practically drooping in relief at the sight of them. McCree knew that he should be relieved to see another member of the team, especially as it didn’t seem as though the ninja was badly hurt, but there was an unpleasant churning in his stomach. If Hanzo had gone to look for his brother, and Genji was here - then where was his partner? It didn’t help that they had seen a serious of explosions rocking part of the base, and he wasn’t sure if that was something his teammates had done, or whether Talon were trying to cut their losses and destroy what evidence they could. And Hanzo still wasn’t answering his communicator…

“Where’s Hanzo?” He demanded, forgoing any greeting as he glanced around, hoping to see Hanzo sitting somewhere. Hell, he would even take him unconscious and tucked into a corner as long as he knew where the other man was.

“He’s not here?”

“I wouldn’t be asking if he was,” McCree snapped, before grimacing as he realised just how sharp his voice had been. It wasn’t going to help anyone if he took out his growing worry on the others, especially with Genji. “Sorry…” The ninja waved it off aware of how close the pair were, not least because he’d had more than a small hand in getting them to finally confess their feelings, and besides the same worry that was written across McCree’s face was beginning to churn in his stomach. He’d caught a bit of their conversation earlier, but he had left them too it, caught up in his own fight and trying to clear a path as best as he could, and he’d thought that his brother would have met up with the others by now.

“Brother?” Genji asked as he activated his own communicator, he knew the others must’ve already tried it, but he had to try, his fingers tapping nervously on his armour as he waited hopefully a response. “Brother if you can hear me. Answer us.” _Don’t be a stubborn fool this time_ , he wanted to say, willing to risk an argument with his brother if it meant the older man would reply, but the words wouldn’t come past the lump that was forming in the back of his throat. _Where are you?_

“Hanzo!” McCree shouted into his own communicator as he caught the way Genji’s fingers were curling into fists, the Ninja was almost never let anything faze him, so his reaction had McCree’s fear igniting into full-blown alarm.

“There was those explosions a little while ago, you don’t think…?” Fareeha spoke up cautiously, immediately regretting her words as McCree tensed, the colour draining from his face. He had been trying to avoid thinking about that possibility, but with her words hanging in the air it was impossible and before he knew it he had turned on his heels and was trying to head for the door. Trying, being the operative word as Ana had lunged forwards to grab him, holding him in place despite his growl of protest.

“Use your head!” Ana snapped, digging her fingers in hard enough to bruise when he continued to struggle, reaching up she tilted his head so that he had to meet her stern gaze as she added. “Dashing out there is just going to get you hurt or killed.” _As well_ … She left that unspoken, but they could all hear the words hanging in the air and McCree paled even as he stilled. Not because of her or even because of her words, but because he could just imagine Hanzo standing there and saying the same thing, only the archer would probably have thrown an exasperated ‘fool’ somewhere in there.

“But…” He couldn’t stop himself from trying to protest only to trail off as the rarely used cell phone that he kept tucked in his pocket began to vibrate. Hope leant him speed, although in his haste he fumbled as he tried to yank it out of his pocket, nearly dropping it as he saw the name he had been hoping for flashing up on the screen. “Hanzo?”

   For a long moment, there was no reply, and the only thing he could hear was strained breathing and something that sounded like rocks shifting together and fresh panic began to churn in his stomach. Finally, there was a cough and groan - neither noise doing anything to comfort him, even though it was at least proof that the man on the end of the phone was still alive, but finally after a moment Hanzo spoke.

_“Yes….”_

“What happened to your communicator?” McCree demanded, not liking how his partner sounded, but realising that he wasn’t calm enough to deal with that just yet. Instead, it was easier to focus on a more mundane matter, not that it was any less important, because if Hanzo’s communicator was broken then so was the distress beacon which was imbedded in it, which was going to make locating Hanzo that much more difficult.

“Broken…” _Of course_ , McCree cursed under his breath and he closed his eyes, trying to calm the swirl of panic building in the pit of his stomach. This was the reason why he had insisted on using old technology like cell phones as a backup, because although Athena had taken it upon herself it make some improvements, Hanzo had a terrible track record of being able to keep his communicator in one piece. According to the archer it was because it hadn’t been designed for someone who tended to scale the sides of buildings and dash across rooftops, whilst McCree just liked to tease him for not being perfect.

“See didn’t I tell you it was a good idea to carry a phone as well?”

 _“Y-es,”_ Hanzo’s acknowledgement was breathy, nothing like his normal self even though it was clear that he had been trying to retort, and something unpleasant shifted in the gunslinger’s stomach and he knew that he couldn’t put off the question anymore.

“What’s wrong?”

_“I…”_

“Hanzo!” McCree barked, now was not the time for his partner’s usual stubbornness to rear its ugly head, although he regretted his tone as he caught the soft intake of breath that greeted it, and whilst he couldn’t see Genji’s face behind the armour he could still feel the dark glare. “Sorry, but you need to talk to me.”

 _“It hurts…”_ Two little words, breathy with pain and McCree froze, of course he hadn’t been expecting good news at this point. However, he didn’t think he could ever remember his partner admitting so bluntly to being in pain, usually he would claim that he was ‘fine’ and McCree was certain that nearly everyone in Overwatch had learnt to take those words as meaning ‘hurt, but not in danger of dying’. _“McCree…”_

“What hurts? Where are you?”

 _“Building collapsed…”_ Hanzo replied after a moment, sounding a little more with it than he had a moment before. _“I think there…was an explosion?”_ He paused for a moment as though trying to remember, and McCree’s eyes narrowed, he knew the signs of a concussion and he also knew that Hanzo never normally forgot a single detail. Worrying at his lip he gestured for Angela to come closer, they were going to need her help on this one, but before he could say that Hanzo was speaking again, struggling to continue. _“I was near…I was…”_ His breathing was faster now, panicked and McCree knew that the fact that he couldn’t remember was adding to his distress and he was quick to try and soothe him.

“Okay,” He murmured reassuringly, hand clenching around the phone, wanting nothing more than to be there to reassure him in person - to run his fingers through greying hair in a way that always had the archer melting against him. Taking a deep breath, he glanced at an anxious looking Angela, gesturing for her to come even closer before hitting the loudspeaker. Hanzo would probably hate him for it later, as he hated showing weakness to him, let alone the rest of the team but it was the fastest way to fill everyone in on what was happening. “Hanzo I need you to tell me what hurts.”

 _“Shot…s-shoulder,”_ Hanzo whispered, a soft whimper slipping through before he could stop it and McCree’s heart clenched at the sound. He’d always hated seeing any of his friends in pain, and that feeling had only intensified where Hanzo was concerned and this time it was worse because he wasn’t there to help him. Swallowing and ignoring the worried looks he knew he was receiving he forced himself to focus when Hanzo took a deep breath before continuing, sounding uncertain and McCree could imagine the pained frown that he was probably wearing. “ _Head…everywhere?”_ McCree didn’t need to look at Angela to know that wasn’t good and it took him a moment to get his voice to work again, and in the end, it was only Genji moving to stand on his other side, hand coming to rest on his shoulder that allowed him to continue.

“Can you move?” The silence that followed was an answer in himself, and it terrified him, and he was surprised that the phone didn’t crack under the force of his grip. “Hanzo?” His voice came out sharper than intended once more, and he would have regretted it were it not for the fact that he heard a muffled groan on the other end before he finally got an answer and promptly wished he hadn’t.

_“Trapped…”_

**

   Silence had reigned for a couple of minutes after that, nothing to be heard apart from the archer’s laboured breathing over the loudspeaker, the weight of Hanzo’s answer and the reality of the situation settling in as they stared at the phone. Without a working communicator, there was no way for Hanzo to activate his distress beacon, which would mean a blind search, especially as it was likely those explosions had taken out several other buildings as well. And the threat from the Talon forces remained, as did Winston’s order for them to retreat.

 _“Go…”_ Hanzo’s voice broke the silence, barely above a whisper, but strangely calm despite the situation he was in and McCree open his mouth to immediately reject that idea only for Genji to beat him to it.

“Brother?”

_“You should go…”_

“No, there’s no way we’re leaving you behind,” Genji snapped, no sign of his usual cheer or calm to be seen and McCree could see armoured fingers slipping down to his sword, almost as though he was planning on physically knocking some sense into his brother as Hanzo made a pained noise at the refusal.

“ _The order…”_ Hanzo broke off coughing harshly, and the atmosphere grew tenser as they listened to him gasping for breath and it was several minutes before he could continue. _“Was to retreat.”_

“That was before this!” McCree growled, unable to believe that Hanzo was worrying about orders right now or that they would be willing to just walk away and leave him behind.

_“McCree…”_

“No!”

“Hanzo,” Ana interrupted smoothly, shooting a quelling look at McCree and the gunslinger took a deep breath and let her continue, knowing that he would probably end up taking an unexpected nap if he didn’t. Instead, he listened intently, hoping that she would be able to get through to Hanzo where he hadn’t been able to. “You cannot argue that I am clouded by my feelings, as it would make more sense for me to focus on getting my daughter away from here.”

_“Then…”_

“We are not leaving you behind,” She cut off his hopeful reply, and McCree bit his lip at her reply, not about to admit aloud that he had been worried that she might try and argue that they had to focus on getting the rest of them out of here. Before he could voice his gratitude, she had already continued. “I need you to try and think about what was around you, before the building collapsed, we don’t have a beacon to follow so we need to narrow down the search area.”

 _“I…”_ Hanzo clearly wanted to protest their decision and McCree was about to growl at him again, when the archer let out a defeated sigh before adding softly. _“Opposite side…to where you are.”_ There was a pause and the gunslinger could imagine the dark eyes closing, the archer summoning up a mental map of the base, aware that even amidst a firefight the older man took in all details of what was around him. “ _T- third building from the cooling tower…. I think?”_ The uncertainty was alarming, but McCree had a feeling that was more to do with his injuries than anything else, or at least he hoped it was, because they didn’t have the time to be searching blindly in the wrong place.

“Good,” Ana praised softly, her calm voice not matching the concerned frown on her face. “We’ll start from there.”

   McCree nodded before slowly pulling the phone back, turning off the loudspeaker and pressing it to his ear, scowling as he heard Hanzo coughing weakly again and he waited for the fit to end, trying not to panic at the slight wheeze he could hear in Hanzo’s breathing now.

“Did you hear that?” He asked softly. “We’re on our way, so you just have to hold on.” _Please…._

“ _’Kay…”_ Hanzo replied softly, apparently realising that it wasn’t worth fighting their decision anymore, and for the first time a hint of real fear slipped into his voice as he asked uncertainly. “ _You’re coming….?”_

“Of course,” McCree was quick to reassure him, somewhat offended that even now Hanzo would doubt it. However, now was not the time to worry himself over the archer’s inability to accept how much everyone worried about him. “And as soon as we get you out of there I’m going to be stuck to your side, so close that you’re going to get sick of me.”

_“Never….”_

****

  They had wasted no time in moving out after that, exiting their temporary shelter just in time to find Lucio and Hana staggering towards them, and it only took a terse explanation to have them falling in with them without complaint. McCree was kept protected in the centre of the group as he kept the phone pressed to his ear, refusing to surrender the one tentative link he had with his partner, even though Peacekeeper was ready in his other hand. Although it appeared that the explosions, and the flames that were now spreading through the base had scattered Talon’s forces as well as they found themselves encountering little more than stragglers who were quickly taken out before they even had a chance to react to the fact that the Overwatch agents were still there. It was only as he downed a soldier who had tried to get a drop on Lucio and Hana, the former still supporting the injured mech-pilot, that it dawned on him that the Hanzo was too quiet. And he hastily turned his attention back to the phone, ignoring the muttered thanks from the pair.

“Hanzo?!” He called urgently, panic rising when he realised that he couldn’t even make out his partner’s wheezing breathing anymore. “Hanzo? Answer me damn it!” He had probably just announced their location to any remaining forces lingering in the area, but he couldn’t bring himself to care, his stomach churning as the silence stretched on and he was about to try again when…

_“You don’t need to shout…”_

   McCree could have wept with relief at the snarky reply, even if Hanzo sounded even worse than he had only moments before. Just the fact that his partner had managed to sound remotely like himself, even it was just for a moment was what he needed right then, and he gripped the phone tighter, closing his eyes as he took a deep breath before gently reprimanding the archer.

“You weren’t replying.” _You scared me. You’re still scaring me and I can’t lose you_. There was no way he could say all that when Hanzo was fighting his hardest just to hold on, and not when the others were in hearing range even if they were currently completely focused on finding their buried teammate. It wasn’t that he cared about them listening in, as he had never made any effort to hide his feelings towards the archer, even before Hanzo had finally caved and admitted that they weren’t just one-sided feelings and he wasn’t about to change now. Hanzo on the other hand was incredibly private, especially when it came to them, and he knew the archer would be less than happy to know the others were overhearing even this much - and McCree was clinging to that thought because it meant believing that the older man would be around to complain.

 _“Tired…resting my eyes…just for a moment,”_ Hanzo whispered, dragging McCree back to the present with an unpleasant jolt as fresh panic flooded him, because he knew that was a bad sign.

“Don’t do that!” McCree made no effort to moderate his volume, his heart hammering in his chest at the thought of Hanzo slipping away before they found him. He could hear it in the archer’s voice, in the hitching breaths - Hanzo was barely hanging on as it was, and if he let himself fall asleep…. “I know you’re tired and you’re hurting, but you have to stay awake.” _Please you have to stay awake_ …

_“Trying…”_

“I know,” he softened his voice, catching the disapproving look that Angela had shot at him for his tone. He was supposed to be comforting his partner and keeping him awake, not arguing with him. Although he knew that Hanzo would pick up on it if he was too soft in his approach, and he was desperately trying to keep how dire the situation really was from the archer, although he doubted that it would work no matter what he tried, even in this state Hanzo was too alert to be fooled. “Just keep talking to me, all right partner?”

“ _Talk?”_ Hanzo asked faintly. _“About…what?”_

“Anything…” _Hell, I would take you lecturing me on how to cook and eat rice properly if it meant that you stayed with me…_

_“Tired…”_

“Hanzo.” McCree breathed, but he couldn’t scold his partner not when he sounded like that, and he took a deep breath, mind racing as he came up with a solution. “Okay, then I’ll talk, but you have to hum or something every couple of minutes to reassure me that you’re awake. Okay?”

_“’Kay…”_

   McCree took a deep breath, wracking his brain for something to talk about, because when he had suggested that he be the one to speak he hadn’t thought that far ahead. It wasn’t that there was a lack of things to talk about, it was more about what wouldn’t stress his partner out, and what wouldn’t have the archer after his blood once he was better. Frantically he glanced around for inspiration, aware that the longer he waited, the more likely it was that Hanzo would give into the temptation to sleep and as his gaze settled on Genji who had just bounded up onto a fence to get a better view of where they were going his eyes lit up.

“Did I ever tell you about my first mission with Overwatch?”

_“N-no…”_

“Well, I was young and foolish, looking for a chance to prove myself…”

****

   McCree’s story lasted until they reached the part of the base that had been completely devastated by the earlier explosions and looking around at the destruction it was hard to believe that Hanzo had survived at all, a realisation that left a bitter taste in his mouth and his words faltered.

_“McCree…?”_

“We’re here,” he replied softly, catching the soft noise, nearly a sob that met that noise. “It’s a bit of a mess up here, but we’re going to find you, okay?” Part of him didn’t want to tell Hanzo about the destruction, but he knew that the archer would pick up on it if he tried to hide, and he didn’t want the fact that it was taking them a while to scare Hanzo. “Hanzo?”

_“I’m not going anywhere…”_

“Oh, so now you’re a comedian?” McCree grumbled, not appreciating the joke although he had to admit that the slightly lighter tone was reassuring, especially when a noise that could almost have been a chuckle followed.

_“It’s…your influence.”_

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” he retorted, a weak grin tugging at his lips despite the situation and the silence that followed was comfortable, right until Hanzo began to cough again and his eyes darkened at the sound. “Hanzo…”

“HERE!” The sharp cry had him glancing up, his breath catching in his throat as Fareeha appeared on the top of one of the pile of rubble a familiar bow in her hands, although the weapon was now cracked in half and minus its string. It hurt to see the bow which Hanzo loved so much in that state, but at least it told them that they were close to where his partner was and right now that was more important, and he couldn’t keep the relief out of his voice as he passed the news on.

“We’ve found the building!”

“ _You need to…go?”_ It was phrased as a question, but he had a feeling that Hanzo meant it more as a statement and he opened his mouth to deny it, but then he hesitated. He didn’t want to hang up, but at the same time he wanted -needed to help get his partner out of there with his own hands. Hanzo must’ve picked up on his hesitation, because there was a soft sigh from the other end. “ _Go_ …”

“But…”

“ _I will…stay awake,”_ Hanzo murmured, and McCree marvelled at the fact that the archer could understand the reason for his hesitation and yet be so surprised by the fact that the team was coming for him. “ _I promise_ …”

“Hanzo…”

 _“I will feel better… knowing that you are the one digging for me_.” It was a shameless attempt to convince him and the gunslinger couldn’t hold back a sharp laugh. He knew that Hanzo meant what he was saying, the man might have been hardened by what life had done to him, but he was still a terrible liar. However, he also knew that the archer was trying to make it easier for him to hang up, and his fingers tightened around the phone, watching the others who’d already set to work. There was so much rubble to shift and they had to be careful not to bury Hanzo further, and they were down one set of hands as Angela was staying back and conserving her energy for when her help would be needed whilst also acting as lookout. And whilst Hana was stubbornly helping despite Lucio’s attempts to get her to rest, her efforts were being hindered by her injures. They needed more hands, and he was the only one available and he let out a defeated sigh.

“All right, but you have to stay awake.”

“ _I promised…”_

“I know,” McCree murmured, aware of the lengths the older man would go to keep a promise, but still uneasy at the thought of doing this. “Make sure that you call me if you feel yourself dropping off, or if you’re injuries get worse, of if our digging…” He knew that he was beginning to ramble, fresh worries popping into his head with each word and he was about to change his mind when Hanzo beat him to it, voice soft but steadier than it had been a moment before.

 _“It will be fine,”_ Hanzo sounded so confident, so trusting and the gunslinger had to close his eyes for a moment. _What did I ever do to deserve such faith from you?_ He wanted to ask but couldn’t bring himself to put it into words, and instead he took a shaky breath before replying softly.

“Yeah…”

 _“Go. I’ll be waiting.”_ The phone beeped to show that the call had been disconnected before he could even muster a response, and he had to fight the urge to call Hanzo back straight away. Instead, he took another shaky breath, double checking that the phone’s tone was set to the highest volume before slipping it into his pocket, before heading across to join the others even as his thoughts remained on the archer trapped somewhere down below

_You’d better…_

****

   Hanzo could feel himself fading, slipping further and further from awareness and his fingers curled weakly around the phone - his one tentative link with the world above, with life. And he brought it up to his ear, needing to hear his partner’s voice again - needing the soft, southern drawl to remind him of sunlight and fresh air, of warmth and life. Needing something more than his own thoughts and the pain wracking his body to keep him conscious, and with clumsy fingers he pressed it closer.

“McCree?” He whispered, the words catching in his dry throat and he broke off with a cough, back arching as the coughing aggravated his ribs, hacking and spluttering as he struggled to draw in enough air. _Where are you? Why aren’t you speaking? Why aren’t you telling me I’m going to be okay, and that you’re going to come for me?_ Eventually he managed to get his breathing back under some semblance of control, if you ignored the odd hitch at the end of each breath and he tried again, the silence pressing in on him. “I…” _Oh, of course, he told me…he’s helping…._ his sluggish mind was finally catching up to what McCree had told him a short while before, or had it been hours ago? He had no idea how long he had been trapped down here, or how long it was since he’d last spoken with his partner.

   For a few minutes, he just lay there, tears in the corners of his eye as he gripped the phone tightly and tried to focus on just breathing -on just holding on a little longer and on the promise that he had made to his partner. But it wasn’t enough. _I want to sleep_ … He knew that was a bad thing, he could remember the panic in McCree’s voice when he had dozed off for a little while earlier, but his eyes were drooping, threatening to close completely and it was getting harder and harder to coax them open again. He’d been in dire situations before, but never had he felt exhaustion like this or the increasingly strong desire to just admit defeat and his fingers curled around his phone as he tried to fight off the feeling. In the past he might have welcomed it, even though death would mean being unable to redeem himself for what he had done to Genji, but now he had more that he wanted to hold onto, and he felt tears escaping onto his cheeks at the thought of what he could lose. _What I’m going to lose,_ a small voice whispered at the back of his mind as he struggled to get his eyes open once more.

_I want to sleep…_

   The world was fading around him now, his eyes reduced to mere slits and he knew that it wouldn’t be long before he couldn’t keep them open anymore. There was a bitter taste in his mouth as he realised that this was something he couldn’t fight, his breath hitching again as he struggled to bring the phone up, so he could see the screen. For a moment, he was distracted by the cracked screen that he hadn’t noticed before, the largest crack running directly between McCree and himself on the cheesy background that his partner had insisted on putting on the phone, running a trembling finger over his partner’s face. _Jesse…_ He could imagine McCree above him right now, frantically trying to get to him and he hated the fact that he wasn’t going to be waiting for him. It was that thought that forced him to focus, fumbling as he dialled the number that until now had been his lifeline, praying that McCree would answer, needing to hear his voice one more time before it was too late.

“McCree?” His voice was barely even a whisper at this point, cracked and painful and his breath hitched again, and it took him a moment to realise that the call had gone to voicemail. It hadn’t got through, and something shattered in his chest then, because he knew that he didn’t have the time to call back and hope that the other man was going to pick up. All he had was the message. Just a few measly seconds to say something that he didn’t even have the words for. There was a lump in his throat as he struggled to get his sluggish mind to work, faltering for a moment before he managed to continue. “Jesse…I -I’m out of time………. I’m sorry….” It wasn’t just an apology for failing to hold on long enough. It was an apology for getting into the mess in the first place, an apology for leaving the McCree behind and for breaking his promise. There was a haze between him and the rest of the world now, his eyes closing and this time he made no effort to open them, instead focusing all his strength on saying the three words that they’d both banned on jobs. 

_“I…Love y…”_

**

   McCree had felt the phone vibrating and heard it ring but he hadn’t been able to get to it, his hands occupied with helping to shift a particularly large chunk of rubble. _We’re coming. Just wait a little longer,_ he’d thought towards his partner, distantly aware of Angela already readying herself behind them. They just needed to get to Hanzo and then she would be able to work her magic on him. A cold voice at the back of his mind was pointing out that it might not be that simple, that Hanzo had clearly been in a bad way, but he hastily smothered it, refusing to even imagine losing the archer and knowing that he couldn’t afford to let fear take over at this stage. Just hold on. _Please, just hold on a little longer._ He risked a glance across at Genji, the ninja had been quiet since they’d started working to excavate his brother and he knew that Genji shared his darkening thoughts and worries and he wished that he had the words to offer him some comfort, but the only comfort that would work for either of them right now was having the archer alive in front of them.

   He was forced to spring out of the way as they dropped the piece of rock, the rubble underneath giving away and causing a small rockslide, but his attention was focused on the tiny space that had opened in front of them, feeling as though someone had just punched him in the gut at the sight that met his frantic gaze.

“Hanzo…”

“Hanzo!” Genji was down in the gap before they could stop him, seemingly unaware of the rubble shifting around them and McCree was about to follow when Ana latched onto his arm, and he turned, ready to snarl at her but she spoke before he could.

“There’s not enough room, let Genji move him and then you can go to him!” He knew that she was right, but he hated the fact that she was focused enough to think like that when his partner was so close. When Hanzo was lying there, eyes closed despite his promise, and McCree stilled when he realised that Genji wasn’t moving. That he wasn’t making any effort to get Hanzo out and up to where Angela was waiting anxiously.

“Genji…?”

    The sound that followed would haunt him for a long time. It was somewhere between a sob and a broken wail, a noise that he had never imagined that Genji could make, and he felt the strength go out of his legs as he watched Genji fall across his brother’s chest. _No…No…No…_ His mind was screaming denials even as something shattered in his chest and he was barely aware of Ana helping him to the ground, or that Angela had shoved past them, ignoring the risk and lack of space as she leapt down beside the two Shimadas, gently pushing Genji out of the way so that she could work. _Please. Please_ … McCree was praying now, clutching at the arm that Ana had wrapped around his chest to hold him in place, desperately hoping that Genji’s reaction had been wrong. Praying for a miracle, even though a small part of him knew that there was no way that Genji would have made a mistake like that.

    It felt like hours even though he knew that it must have been only a matter of minutes, and then Angela was slowly leaning back, her shoulders bowed in defeat and McCree shook his head even as she turned to look up at him, her hand moving to rest on Genji’s shoulder.

“I’m…”

“Don’t say it…” McCree choked out harshly, vaguely aware that his cheeks were already damp with tears as he shook his head again, feeling Ana’s arm tightening around him. “Don’t…”

“I’m sorry…”

   A pained noise filled the air and it took him a moment to realise that it was coming from him, but he couldn’t silence it, curling in on himself as the shattering that had begun moments before intensified and he squeezed his eyes shut. He didn’t want to face the truth. He didn’t want to watch as Angela and Genji gently began to lift the archer’s body out of the rubble. He didn’t want to see the grief and pity in the other’s eyes as they gathered around him, already mourning one of their own. He wasn’t ready to mourn. He wasn’t ready to face the truth. But the world wouldn’t fade away, and he found his eyes opening as he heard the rubble shifting, his vision blurry with tears as he watched them gently setting Hanzo down on a relatively stable area. _Hanzo._ With choked noise he broke free of Ana’s hold, crawling to the archer’s side, barely aware of Genji dropping back to his knees on the opposite side as he now only had eyes for Hanzo.

   Hanzo’s eyes were closed, but he didn’t look peaceful, his face twisted with grief, and McCree’s fingers shook as he reached up to brush away the evidence of his partner’s tears, fingers curling against pale cheeks, taking in the blood in his hair around a nasty gash. Lingering on the blood and bruises marring Hanzo’s face and he couldn’t bring himself to look lower, to see what other injuries had stolen the archer from him.

“You promised…” He whispered instead, screwing his eyes shut as he leant down to press his lips to Hanzo’s forehead. “You promised…” His voice cracked, whatever control he had been clinging to shattering when there was no response, no stirring at his voice or touch and he began to sob. Huge, broken sobs that shook his entire body as he pulled Hanzo into his arms, burying his face into dark hair.

_Hanzo…why?_

****

   It had been nearly two weeks later that he had finally remembered the call that he’d missed that day, his heart breaking anew when he charged the phone to find a message waiting for him and it took him another couple of days to summon up the courage to listen to it. The last couple of weeks had passed in a blur, he couldn’t remember the funeral although he knew that he had stood to speak, but even now he had no idea what he had said, certain that no words could have come close to describing Hanzo. That no words could’ve voice what he had lost and since then he had been in a haze, avoiding everyone apart from Genji, but even then, any time spent with the Ninja involved anguished silence and far too much alcohol. But at least it was contact, a little bit of Hanzo that he could still cling to.

    However, for this task he found himself treading the now familiar but still hated path out to where they had laid Hanzo to rest at the edge of the island, his grave overlooking the sea that he had spent so many hours watching, settling himself down beside the stone that marked his resting spot with a whispered greeting.

    For several minutes, he just stared at the phone in his hands, eyes already stinging at the thought of hearing his partner’s voice again even if it was just a recording. Eventually, he hit the button to retrieve the voicemail message and lifted the phone to his ear with trembling fingers, his eyes closing when he heard Hanzo’s first shaky breath, unprepared for the pain that slammed into him at the broken words that followed…

_“McCree? Jesse…I-I’m out of time…………. I’m sorry…. I…Love y…”_

   A gasping sob escaped as he found himself doubling over, clumsily hitting the replay button, the numbness that had settled in after the funeral disintegrating as Hanzo’s broken words washed over him for a second time, and then a third…and a fourth…again and again he replayed it, the words burning their way deeper and deeper into his shattered heart, until he let out an anguished howl as the phone fell from his hands.

_Hanzo…_

_I’m sorry…_

_I love you too…_

 


End file.
